Professional golfer Reed Stewart hasn't returned to his hometown of Bloomville, Ind., in a decade. After an embarrassing incident involving his high school girlfriend, a golf cart and a swimming pool, Reed moved to California and has rarely looked back. But when his parents become the subject of an Internet scandal, Reed is called home to assume his filial responsibilities and face his ex, Becky Flowers. Prolific author Meg Cabot (the Princess Diaries series; Every Boy's Got One) spins a frothy, highly entertaining narrative with surprising depth in her fourth "Boy" novel, The Boy Is Back.
Arriving in Bloomville, Reed discovers that his sister-in-law Carly has hired a local senior relocation firm to help his parents purge their belongings and move out of their house. As fate (or Carly) would have it, Becky is the owner of that firm. Through text messages, e-mails and journal entries, Cabot traces the history and rekindling of Becky and Reed's relationship, with plenty of input and sarcastic asides from Reed's siblings, Becky's sister and Reed's caddy, Enrique (who dispenses advice while dining out on Reed's expense account). Savvy readers may guess the novel's main plot twist and conclusion, but that won't rob them of the pleasure of following the characters' witty banter and filling in the gaps when the screens go silent.
With winning characters and a satisfying romantic-comedy plot, Cabot's novel is at once a love story, a tribute to family and a clear-eyed look at the upsides and downsides of living in a small town. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams